Upon rewatching, I take back my comment that Ghost was starting a spin around and that what caused the angle of the deflection. The pass was a little in front of him.

However, the pass was not THAT far in front, not THAT fast, there was no one near him and he had a clear line of vision to see it come.

NHL videos suck donkey balls. I never understand why some of them are so blurry. In this snapshot, the puck is circled.


- PT21

The replay is crystal clear. Gostisbehere is a LH shot and the pass was on his right foot.

Its a pass I expect a professional player to be able to handle, but it was far from a perfect pass. I think Ghost, Farabee and puck watching Provorov all have a slice of the blame pie on that one.
- jd250

So you expect a professional player to handle every pass that handcuffs him and is off his stick. I'll use a line you use often in reply to me. Do you watch the game?

I never said he is not physical. He is just not as physical as Ekholm. In all you wrote, you never compared the two.
- PT21

Ekholm is not a physical player.

It was a crappy pass that should have been handled, why didn’t he just use his feet ? It’s overtime, he made a piss poor attempt to receive the puck regardless how bad the pass was.
- ClaudeFather

So crappy passes are always handled. Or just when it's a player that you want to blame? There was nothing wrong with his attempt.

Honestly I think it costs us Nolan Patrick and a little more.

It depends on how close they think Attard is. I thought he showed out pretty well this year. He fits all the right criteria...booming shot, 215lbs and growing, can skate. He just needs to find his consistency like York and then we would see. The real question is do they Flyers see 2nd pair with him or more. I think they expected Myers to be 1st pair but Im not sure he is there in the near term. So if they dont think Attard can be there next season then it would make sense if they could get Ellis.

Id rather them make a deal with Tampa because something has to give there. They are loaded up and have to shed salary....they played fast and loose with LTIR with Kucherov. They basically let him get some clean up procedure so they could bury his contract and not have to trade their way out of cap hell. That has to give soon. With that in mind, Id take a huge run at Cernak.
- juiced

Interesting, I forgot about Attard, he had a really good season where he really improved as the season went along. Still York and Attard have not played a pro game yet so you have to think they are another season away from potentially joining the team. I watch St. Ivany frequently at BC and he is really steady, but not much offensive upside, I see him as a bottom 3 Dmen potentially. I have no problem losing Patrick at this point, I think its worth the risk of losing him given the centers in the Flyers system that are coming up, i.e. Frost, Foerster and O'Brien.

Edit: And going after Cernak would be really smart, RHD, good size and only 23 years old on a reasonable contract.

This is the NHL, you can stop a pass with your foot, or why not just redirect it right out of the zone . There were a bunch of people at fault here but ghost is for sure one of them
- ClaudeFather

In the NHL, passes often deflect off of skates and cause turnovers. No guarantee that if he uses his skate, he would have handled the puck.

2019 - Ekholm had 49 hits in 68 games; Ellis had 48 in 49 games
2018 Ekholm had 68 hits in 80 games and Ellis had 71 hits in 82 games.

I watch plenty of the Predators and I will have to disagree that Ekholm is more physical than Ellis. Even basic hit statistics show little separation. I just dont see where this idea of "Physical and with edge" i keep seeing on the Flyers blog pages comes from.

Ekholm is predictable and fundamentally sound...he wont wow you in any one area. Hes a good player but he is left side and we need right side help. For the cost, IMO Ellis is the better player for what this team needs.
- juiced

Agreed. Ekholm is a finesse defenseman.

So crappy passes are always handled. Or just when it's a player that you want to blame? There was nothing wrong with his attempt.
- MJL

This is such a bad take, it’s overtime , bare down and catch the pass, use your skate if needed. Obviously passes are mishandled all the time but guess what, when it’s mishandled in a crucial area in overtime, it usually ends up in the back of your net doesn’t it? And for the record I said there was plenty of blame to go around, and Ghost sure as hell deserves some

So you expect a professional player to handle every pass that handcuffs him and is off his stick. I'll use a line you use often in reply to me. Do you watch the game?
- MJL

I'd said the pass wasn't perfect but one I expect Ghost to handle. Ghost not only didn't handle it, he didn't even come close to handling it!

In the NHL, passes often deflect off of skates and cause turnovers. No guarantee that if he uses his skate, he would have handled the puck.
- MJL

Well the route he went with ended up in the back of our net so maybe use your skate next time

Agreed. Ekholm is a finesse defenseman.
- MJL

I would not label him a finesse defenseman, this is very inaccurate. Ekholm is physical in games, I see it all the time.

Interesting, I forgot about Attard, he had a really good season where he really improved as the season went along. Still York and Attard have not played a pro game yet so you have to think they are another season away from potentially joining the team. I watch St. Ivany frequently at BC and he is really steady, but not much offensive upside, I see him as a bottom 3 Dmen potentially. I have no problem losing Patrick at this point, I think its worth the risk of losing him given the centers in the Flyers system that are coming up, i.e. Frost, Foerster and O'Brien.
- jd250

If Attard is watching the Flyers (and Im sure he is), he sees a financial opportunity to make the jump to the Phantoms now that his season is over. He could close out the AHL season and get a good start on making a run at 3rd pair Right side D next year. Then he is on NHL salary vs. AHL and he has a fast track to slotting up higher as he develops.

Well the route he went with ended up in the back of our net so maybe use your skate next time
- ClaudeFather

Guys its a moot point IMO. The Flyers had no legs in OT and when you have no legs you make mistakes. That goal was the result of 5 fatigued players on the ice for the Flyers, nothing more.

If Attard is watching the Flyers (and Im sure he is), he sees a financial opportunity to make the jump to the Phantoms now that his season is over. He could close out the AHL season and get a good start on making a run at 3rd pair Right side D next year. Then he is on NHL salary vs. AHL and he has a fast track to slotting up higher as he develops.
- juiced

Physically he certainly has the size to play in the AHL right now, good call. Also going after Cernak would be really smart, RHD, good size and only 23 years old on a reasonable contract.

Physically he certainly has the size to play in the AHL right now, good call. Also going after Cernak would be really smart, RHD, good size and only 23 years old on a reasonable contract.
- jd250

and he's learning the game from Hedman and McDonagh and that is HUGE. Tampa probably knows this and would probably let Sergachev go before Cernak.

Provy/Cernak would be a great pair...so we would have to give up some young and cheap talent so Tampa can reload. Im just not sure Tampa would give up a RHD with as hard as they have been to find. However, having a recent cup win can make teams rethink....especially when they are this deep in cap hell

2019 - Ekholm had 49 hits in 68 games; Ellis had 48 in 49 games
2018 Ekholm had 68 hits in 80 games and Ellis had 71 hits in 82 games.

I watch plenty of the Predators and I will have to disagree that Ekholm is more physical than Ellis. Even basic hit statistics show little separation. I just dont see where this idea of "Physical and with edge" i keep seeing on the Flyers blog pages comes from.

Ekholm is predictable and fundamentally sound...he wont wow you in any one area. Hes a good player but he is left side and we need right side help. For the cost, IMO Ellis is the better player for what this team needs.
- juiced

Fine. You know more about it than I do.

To my naked eye, I thought I have seen Ekholm be significantly more physical along the boards and in the crease than Ellis, who seems to rely more on positioning and stick work. But I could be wrong - as my sample set is small.

Fine. You know more about it than I do.

To my naked eye, I thought I have seen Ekholm be significantly more physical along the boards and in the crease than Ellis, who seems to rely more on positioning and stick work. But I could be wrong - as my sample set is small.
- PT21

See...that is where I see it exactly the opposite. Ellis seems quicker to anger, asserts himself more abruptly. To me Ekholm seems to have the demeanor of a larger (but slightly less skilled) Kimmo.

This is such a bad take, it’s overtime , bare down and catch the pass, use your skate if needed. Obviously passes are mishandled all the time but guess what, when it’s mishandled in a crucial area in overtime, it usually ends up in the back of your net doesn’t it? And for the record I said there was plenty of blame to go around, and Ghost sure as hell deserves some
- ClaudeFather

The bigger issue on that play for me is both D men were thinking offense first, rather than taking care of the d zone (which is exactly what Ghost said got him benched). Provorov passed to Farabee then blew the zone. From there, the forward is the only guy left back, and he's being pressured. Rather than recognizing that and coming all the way back to give Farabee a better outlet, Ghost circles just inside the line, looking to turn up ice, can't handle the pass and the rest is history. Not to mention both d men were lazy coming back (Provorov was coasting back and Pageau beat Ghost to the net). Not a good look for this teams top d men.

The bigger issue on that play for me is both D men were thinking offense first, rather than taking care of the d zone (which is exactly what Ghost said got him benched). Provorov passed to Farabee then blew the zone. From there, the forward is the only guy left back, and he's being pressured. Rather than recognizing that and coming all the way back to give Farabee a better outlet, Ghost circles just inside the line, looking to turn up ice, can't handle the pass and the rest is history. Not to mention both d men were lazy coming back (Provorov was coasting back and Pageau beat Ghost to the net). Not a good look for this teams top d men.
- Flyerfan2868

I’d have to watch the entire thing again to comment on that but I’m pretty sure they were all out there a while, Farabee needs to make a better decision there himself.

See...that is where I see it exactly the opposite. Ellis seems quicker to anger, asserts himself more abruptly. To me Ekholm seems to have the demeanor of a larger (but slightly less skilled) Kimmo.
- juiced

Lets take this over to the new thread.

See...that is where I see it exactly the opposite. Ellis seems quicker to anger, asserts himself more abruptly. To me Ekholm seems to have the demeanor of a larger (but slightly less skilled) Kimmo.
- juiced

This has been really enlightening to me, thank you!

Well the route he went with ended up in the back of our net so maybe use your skate next time
- ClaudeFather

You don't know what the outcome of using his skate would be. It potentially could bounce off his skate and right to an attacking player in a dangerous area. You're incredibly off base here.

I would not label him a finesse defenseman, this is very inaccurate. Ekholm is physical in games, I see it all the time.
- jd250

He is a finesse player. He is not a physical defenseman. He is not a big hitter. For example, Eric Desjardins was a finesse defenseman. So was Mark Howe. That doesn't mean that they aren't strong on the puck or weak around the net. It's a style of play.

Myers played fine last night. He is not a 3rd pair defenseman. Braun has played well for the majority of the season. I disagree with you on pretty much everything.
- MJL

Myers just made the identical mistake to the night before. Gets the puck on the right side boards, panics, turns it over, it's in our net.
I'm not hating on him. I think he'll be fine in a couple of years. But I bet if Hagg had done this two nights in a row, you would say he's not fit to play in the NHL. But instead he's playing fine and he's at least a#4?

Myers just made the identical mistake to the night before. Gets the puck on the right side boards, panics, turns it over, it's in our net.
I'm not hating on him. I think he'll be fine in a couple of years. But I bet if Hagg had done this two nights in a row, you would say he's not fit to play in the NHL. But instead he's playing fine and he's at least a#4?
- therabbi

Myers didn't panic. He had no where to go with the puck so he tried to rim it out off the glass. His teammates did not give him any support. Even Keith Jones stated that he had no where to go.